The topography of the heart of Hyderabad is set to undergo yet another massive change. The State government has changed the land use of the 14-acre NTR stadium near Indira Park from open land to that of public and semi-public use.
The GO was issued on January 12, exactly on the day of notification for GHMC elections. This clears the way for building of the Telangana Kala Bharati touted to be a cultural centre for the city. Designed by Hafeez Contractor, the building would look like a clone of the White House, but without the setback, it would look like the Meridian wedding hall in Toli Chowki.
The NTR stadium is not just another piece of land but one rich with history and nostalgia as generations of youngsters have played in the open ground that sees dozens of games being played simultaneously. Dozens of young men who play cricket and pursue other outdoor sports at the ground have now written a letter to the Chief Minister asking him to drop the proposal.
“There is no alternative playground for us to play on. Many of us have come all the way from LB Nagar, Falaknuma and other areas every Sunday and on holidays and enjoy meeting with friends and competing with other teams. Our senior friends have been playing here and many of them have become sportsmen because of such a facility,” says the letter written by the youngsters and signed by 79 of them.
Among the signatories are Abhinav Palnitkar from Narayanguda, Syed Saif Ullah from Malakpet and Swamy from Vittalwadi. The letter from Swamy and his friends also shows the serious absence of public spaces in the city where youngsters can play, run and indulge in physical activity.
For the last few years, the NTR Stadium area has been hosting the annual Hyderabad Book Fair and turns into home ground for thousands of protesters who raise their voice at the Dharna Chowk near Indira Park.
A senior government planner questions the legality of the change of land use. “The said change of land use undertaken by HMDA and Government was done under Section 15 (1) of the HMDA Act, 2008.
The said section empowers the HMDA or Government undertake any modification only to the Metropolitan Development and Investment Plan-whereas the modification was undertaken to the Revised Master Plan for erstwhile MCH Area – which the HMDA Act, 2008 does not empower either HMDA or Government to do. Thus the said change of land use is ultra vires since government does not have powers to change the land use in respect of the Revised Master Plan for erstwhile MCH Area,” he says.
Showing the hurry with which the GO has been pushed through is the caveat in parenthesis about the outcome of two Public Interest Litigations pending in the High Court.
